Explode
by Create-tion
Summary: A terrible accident left Gracelyn "dead" and living with an eternal headache...literally. No matter how hard she tries to hide it her powers keep surfacing. Can she keep herself hidden? Will a chance run in with Spiderman destroy her possibility to stay a secret? Can Spiderman save her from herself before it's too late? BETTER INSIDE BAD AT SUMMARY!
1. Accident

Gracelyn took a deep breath staring across the street as the cars passed by. Her heart ticked beats off as she stuffed her hands deeper into her pockets. Anymore, it took so much effort to keep this much control. Her head was pounding. Gracelyn closed her eyes for a moment and fumbled trying to pull the cigarette from her jean pocket. It took three clicks of the lighter before she got it. The flame lit and she inhaled deeply. Control. Control. Control. She couldn't lose it here; not with all these people. She knew it had been a bad idea to come out. She knew that putting herself around this many people was wrong. She'd been so hungry. Normally, Gracelyn went for large store trips and loaded everything she could so that she could stay indoors away from people. She worked at home from her computer for a small insurance firm hacking and tracking their clients businesses. The less people, the better. A car horn sounded near the curb and a cabbie leaned out the window yelling at someone to Gracie's left. She took a step back. Someone shoved her making a noise about how she'd bumped into them.

"I'm sorry." She whispered putting a hand up. The smoke from her cigarette swirled up around her eyes making everything hazy. Control. She quickly waved the smoke out of view and pulled her jacket tighter setting for to cross the street.

Gracie pushed the doors open to the small run down corner market at the end of the street. It wasn't much, and the owner was a foreign man with three children, but she liked this place. He didn't ask her questions and she knew he was armed. If anyone in here ever tried to pull a robbery, he'd handle it. She made her way down the first isle past a small rack of crinkled chips that had seen their better days. She reached for gummie worms and soda from the shelf. She didn't need those but god how she wanted something with sugar. Her usual list consisted of soup, beans, water, and cigarettes. Hacking didn't pay well when you didn't really have a birth certificate. Gracie sighed as her hand closed around another can of tomato soup. At some point she'd have to figure out a way to make herself into a real person again. According to Oscorp records her job had been terminated during an accident and she was dead. Gracelyn Savage no longer existed. If Oscrop ever got wind of her being alive…things wouldn't go so well.

"Eveyrbody get down!" a man yelled slamming open the front door. Gracelyn was jerked from her thoughts dropping the can to the floor. She took a step back ducking just enough behind the shelf that he couldn't immediately see her. The store owner started yelling at him to put the weapon down. He reached under the counter. Gracie froze as a shot went off. The owner, his name was Ozzy, gasped clutching his side. He fumbled for the counter before sliding down. Her eyes got wide. Not here. Not now. Shit.

"Yo! Little girl! Get out here!" the guy snapped waving his gun in her direction. He'd caught a glimpse of her hair. Shit.

"I said get out here now!" a shot was fired in her general direction. She felt the pressure in the back of her head building up. Her hands started to shake. Anytime something scared her or was a threat this happened. Gracelyn tried to control it. Her heart raced thumping in her chest. The pressure drummed like pounding lights behind her eyes.

"I said get out here!" The guy came around the isle corner and started towards her. He reached out, his grimy strung out hand swiping or her arm, and she lost it.

That strange power that surged from her chest and tingled down her arms; it was like a small explosion ready to burst out of her body.

"Get away from me!" she tried to tell him. She tried to take a step back. Her eyes were wide with worry and fear. The man's fingers closed around her yanking her forward when it happened.

There was a powerful blast of blue and orange light that emanated from her body. It started from her chest and surged outward like a cloud, even jutting from her fingers. The wave shot through the man. Gracelyn felt her eyes change, consumed with the power in her body. They went from white and green to a flat glowing orange. She shook. The man stumbled back shaking. Shelves fell backwards sliding along the floor from the blast. Chips, bottles, cans…they scattered over the tiles in all directions.

"Oh god…" the words died on Gracelyn's lips as slowly the man fell to his knees. The radiation from her blast was already infecting him. He'd been too close. His veins started to turn black, the infected blood spreading, until he gasped choking. He reached up to his neck as blood started dripping from his nose.

"No…" she took another step back. Not again. The man hit the floor twitching as his body was shutting down. She felt tears well up in her eyes. She had to leave. Sirens. She heard police sirens. They couldn't find her here. Not here. She swiped for her backpack and quickly stuffed random things off the floor into it. She caught sight of her hand as she snatched a water off the floor. Traces of orange and blue were still bubbling through her veins under the skin. She couldn't run anywhere like this. She was a glowing street sign. She groaned and jacked a hoodie off a rack pulling it on. She hated stealing. She hated being this person. She would have given anything to go back to being an intern at Oscorp. She made a break for the door but stopped panicking. Her eyes were still completely consumed with energy. Sunglasses, she needed shades. There was a rotating rack near the counter. She bit her lip grabbing the first pair and made a break for it. Three cop cars were racing up the street with their lights blaring. Gracie sprinted, feet hitting the pavement, as fast as she could. She didn't look back.

-(Later at the scene)-

Peter hung from the blind of a shop near the alley mouth watching as police filtered in and out of the store that had been robbed. He'd caught wind that there had been something different about the scene. He'd not made it around in time, but the aftermath was roped off and being locked down. He watched as two men suited in Hazmat gear walked into the convenient shop. Why on earth would they need that? He lowered himself just a fraction, barely letting his web down, to overhear the cops below.

"They said there's Plutonium in there. All over the damn place." One said rubbing his whiskered chin.

"How did Plutonium get inside there? The shop owner didn't see anything?" the other shook his head.

"They said it might have been a testing for a bomb. Stolen Plutonium…they were going to set it off somewhere else but some idiot tried to rob the place." He shrugged.

"You mean the idiot that's laying in there rotting from exposure?" the other guy snapped sarcastically. "Guess they didn't need the cops for that one."

"I guess everything will be on high alert for a while." He nodded to his friend as the men in hazmat came out carrying a body bag.

"Whatever's going on, it's not good."

Peter narrowed his eyes. Plutonium? There was Plutonium that had exploded all over the inside of that building? It didn't make any sense. He sighed. This was going to be a whole other level of crap that he didn't need right now.

Gracelyn slammed her apartment door, which was three floors up in a shit hole complex, and slid down the wall. Her hands were still shaking as the glasses slid off her face. Her chest hurt. Everything hurt. It always hurt after she lost control. Right after the initial release, there was pain; so much pain that she usually knocked herself out with drugs or alcohol to deal with it. She thought about it. She wanted to get up and swig back a couple of pills but that wasn't going to work. She couldn't walk. Her legs had barely gotten her home and she was still glowing like a freaking party light. She unsteadily held up a hand to examine it. The veins under her skin surged blue and orange like a mixture of a glow stick. The pressure behind her eyes still ached mildly. She let out a breath and put her head on her knees. This wasn't going to work. She'd killed someone. She'd killed another person. That made six. Five of the scientists that had been in the containment cell with her…and that guy. She was a walking time bomb. There was no way she could go out in public again. This was it. She'd have to find another place to live that was so far away from people there wouldn't be a chance. She barely made enough money to get by and her savings had been seized when she'd died. The only hope she had of getting out was taking a foreign hacking job which came along rarely. She'd have to bide her time until then. She was a walking freak of nature and a danger to everyone she knew.

A tear slid down her cheek. Gracelyn twitched sucking in a breath between her teeth hissing. She quickly wiped the tear away immediately rubbing the hand on her shirt. Chemicals in her tears from the Plutonium burned her skin. There was now a red line that would heal shortly down the side of her face. She sighed. She was even a danger to herself. There was no telling how infected she was. She could barely remember the number of times they'd injected her with that stuff. She let her head fall back hitting the wall.

"I've got to get out of here…" she said to herself. "Before I kill someone else or they kill me…"


	2. Explosion

Gracelyn sighed staring at the screen of her computer. Her eyes were rimmed with circles. She hadn't slept in days. She had been tracking this man from Portland for a security firm. The guy had claimed to have a broken leg but was currently vacationing in Alaska at a swanky lodge with his mistress. She'd hacked three security cameras to get accessible photos with an identifiable face shot. The last thing she had to do was upload everything she'd compiled and send it off to the company. They'd hardwire money to her bank account under the name: Lisa Fisher. Once she got the money, she could finally get someone to fix the kitchen. There was no longer a stove because she'd nearly blown it up two weeks ago. She leaned back in her work chair running a hand through her hair. She was tired.

"I have got to get some new movies…" she mumbled to herself. She snatched for the remote from the floor and clicked on the TV across the room. She started to swivel her chair around. The news flared up and she stopped mid swing watching.

Spiderman swung across a corner street near the heart of town following several cop cars. The woman on the screen talked about some kind of bank heist. They flashed a man's picture over the screen. He was younger but looked hard with unshaved fuzz and deep set eyes. Her eyes traced the superhero as he swung through the buildings before the camera lost him.

"Yeah…need some movies." She told herself again. She got up, peeling herself from her chair, and started towards her small shelf with DVDs.

As her fingers filmed through the titles she felt a strange cough starting in her chest. Gracelyn coughed some before having to stand up. She was winded. The coughing turned to hacking and she stumbled to the bathroom. Her fingers slid over the light switch as something dark and sticky splattered the sink and her hand. She bit her lip looking down. Blood. She was coughing up blood. Panic started to rise in her chest. Her heart started beating faster. Gracie leaned against the counter staring down into the tan tiled sink. She was getting sick again. This had happened before. She reached up wiping her hand on the teal towel hanging off the wall, leaving the red smear behind, and started to pull her hair up with a tie from her wrist. When she pulled her hands away there were strands laced through them. It was a clump of hair. She felt her hands begin to shake. She reached up parting the hair near her scalp close to her forehead. She ran her fingers over the thin line. More hair was coming loose. She sucked in a breath. She'd never lost hair before. It had to be from the radiation that she'd been exposed too. Wide green eyes glanced up at the mirror as she looked herself over. She was pale. She was exhausted. She was dying. She looked like a cancer patient in the early process of chemo.

"Get it together." She told her reflection. It was half-hearted. She gripped the sink staring down into it. What was she going to do? She needed medical help but there wasn't anyone she could go too. Oscorp had what she needed but they'd kill her. Gracie closed her eyes sighing. She'd have to go out and get some medicines later today. Usually, some sort of mixture, Dayquil and Mucinex did the job. It didn't help her health wise but it bode the pain away which was a primary problem in her head at the moment.

A few hours later, after a much needed shower, and clean clothes later; Gracelyn had set out. This time she'd mounted up with a hoddie and sunglasses to start with. She had her face hidden beneath the hood and the sunglasses securely in place. She stuffed her hands inside her large front pocket and set her shoulders as she walked on the familiar streets of the city. She wouldn't go to the same shop. She'd stay very very far away from there. The goal was to get inside any small convenient store, grab the meds, and go. She didn't plan on talking to anyone. She didn't plan on looking in anyone's particular direction. She was going to keep people safe from herself. She had too. This was a get in and get out mission. She drew in a deep breath stopping on the street preparing to head inside a shop she'd spotted.

A car came barreling down the main street. It's tires screeched as it careened around the turn. Her eyes darted to the car. The driver looked consumed. He punched the gas and the engine revved. Several people screamed running off the street to get out of the way. A woman struggled tripping while yanking her little boy by the arm. His foot hit the curb but he didn't make it up. The car screamed down the street. Men came running around the corner with guns. They were huge guns. People shoved around her, trying to get out of the line of fire. Shots whizzed down the street. Gracelyn felt that pressure behind her eyes again. Her hands tingled. Her heart raced. No! Not here! Jeez! She tried to duck inside the store behind her but she got caught. One of the men who'd come running caught her arm spinning her. She heard a familiar swoop overhead as he leveled a handgun at her head.

"That's not very nice!" Spiderman chided swinging overhead. "Pick on someone your own size." He chuckled shooting web down at them. He yanked the guy up easily, his gun clattering to the pavement, and slammed him into the side of a building. She stared wide eyed up at him, her jaw slightly open.

"You're welcome." He said to her before swinging over her head towards the car that that had taken off.

"Hey Spiderman!" someone yelled to her right. She turned seeing a guy standing clad in off market swat gear. He had a weapon placed on his shoulder and a wild grin on his face. Her eyes got wider. The pain behind her eyes intensified.

"Is that a rocket launcher?" Spiderman mouthed sucking in a breath. There were too many people around. Civilians were going to get hurt badly.

Gracelyn moved hurriedly. She started shoving people inside the store, as many as she could, trying to get them out of the path of destruction.

"Get inside! Now!" she snapped ushering the small boy and mother inside who'd tripped on the curb.

"You get inside!" Spiderman snapped landing on the ground near her. "Seriously? What is wrong with you! Go!" he gestured at the door. She didn't move. Something stopped her. Her heart seized in panic as the next moment happened very fast. The man pulled the trigger.

There was a loud boom.

It wasn't until after it had happened that Gracelyn realized what she'd done.

As the rocket came speeding towards Spiderman and herself, it had become very clear that they'd both choked and froze up. The strange sensation that caught her body off-guard built up rapidly. The pain was almost exploding from inside her body. It had to come out. Without thinking, she curled her hand into a fist. How dare they fire that thing with all of these people around. She swung. Gracelyn swung her arm like she could punch the guy who'd done this.

As she did this the power from the Plutonium radiated outwards from her body. It extended from her fist in a wave so powerful even she stumbled backwards. A wave of orange and blue exploded outward as the rocket came forward. They collided. Gracelyn shook realizing that she could feel the impact of the rocket hitting the wave of energy she was out-flexing. She stood up straighter and gripped her fist tighter. She shoved her fist out and the field of energy holding the still powered rocket pushed it back. A grin broke out on her face. She threw her arm out and screamed letting it all go. She let everything go. She let the pain go. She let the pressure go. She let her body release everything. The wave amplified and enveloped the rocket condensing in on itself before creating a controlled explosion. The rocket disappeared in a small controlled wave of fire within her blue and orange energy.

For once…there was no pressure or pain. Gracelyn stared wide eyed and confused breathing heavily from the exertion she'd put on her body. As the wave of energy dissipated she heard a low whistle behind her. Her head whipped around.

"That was something impressive." Spiderman said nodding in her direction.

"I…I…h-have to go. Now." She said suddenly. No one was supposed to know about her. This couldn't happen. Shit. She groaned before shaking her head and taking off. Gracelyn ran as hard and fast as she could. Oscorp would be all over this if they identified her face. It was like her entire brain was on high alert. She could not be found. Gracelyn Savage was dead. She was a danger to everyone…


End file.
